


Feels Like Christmas

by phanimist



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: AU, Christmas, First Meeting, Fluff, M/M, Teenagers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-24
Updated: 2016-12-24
Packaged: 2018-09-11 13:34:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,284
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8982019
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phanimist/pseuds/phanimist
Summary: Dan's told to go out to get things at the store, despite the fact that it's Christmas Eve, and he's not all too happy about it until he runs into a cute stranger named Phil.





	

**Author's Note:**

> me? not having a good title idea? more likely than you think.  
> merry christmas :) i figured i'd post this now as most people probably have things to do on christmas eve and the actual day of. i've had this fic planned and sitting in my drafts for a little while, so i hope you all like it. i also hope that you have the best holiday season with your friends and family, no matter what you celebrate.

Dan really wasn’t in a good mood. His hair was curling at the ends due to the falling flakes of fluffy snow, his toes were the kind of cold that made them ache, and he didn’t think he’d ever be able to feel his ears ever again. He kicked a pile of snow as he passed it, letting the pieces fall down onto the sidewalk, watching as he crushed them under his boots as he walked forward.

His grandparents and the rest of his family were all over for Christmas Eve, fawning over his little brother. He was cute and small and hadn’t developed an attitude yet, nor any obsessions that didn’t sit well with anyone over twenty, so there was no lack of adoration available for the boy.

His parents had sent him out to get things like milk, and peppermints, and the kind of pre-made bread you put in the oven and serve, and it was the last thing that Dan wanted to be doing right now, truthfully.

It didn’t feel like Christmas this year.

Dan had been given projects to do over break (which he was probably overreacting about) and his aunts and uncles who liked to talk big topics they didn’t fully understand were all coming over tomorrow. Dan’s friends had also all gone to visit their family hours away, leaving Dan all alone in their old, boring, and cold town this holiday season.

A car whizzes past, tires skidding on the wet pavement, and Dan can’t help but glare at the vehicle as it whizzes past. Why can’t he be old enough to drive yet? He was just past sixteen, but his family had been so busy with the baby that they hadn’t had time to teach him to drive, nor help him enroll in drivers ed since Dan was generally pretty incompetent about that kind of stuff. He wouldn’t even have his license by now anyways, regardless.

It feels like it’s been years by the time Dan has finally reached his destination. It’s a family-run grocery of sorts in a plaza not far from his house, run by a family who didn’t celebrate Christmas. Dan had been told to wish the clerks there a happy something-or-other, but he hadn’t heard his mother's last words before he’d closed the door to the house between them, only slightly bitter about having to go out on errands on Christmas Eve against his will.

Dan’s already struggling with the slushy pavement of the parking lot, focusing way too much on where each foot was stepping. The only thing that could make this worse was falling, he thought, as he carefully made his way towards the door to the store.

With all his focus on one thing, Dan didn’t even notice the sole car parked in the parking lot, nor did he expect it when the door opened right next to him once he’d reached it. As the door swung open and a boot-clad foot stepped out, Dan jumped, one foot slipping out from underneath him as he nearly toppled over.

Dan quickly regains his balance, not after letting out an unceremonious yelp, one hand braced against the car to steady himself.

“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry.” The boy says. Dan properly looks at the one who’d scared him so much then, and his jaw nearly dropped. At the very least, his lips had parted slightly in surprise, because _fuck_ Dan had never seen a more beautiful person. His dark hair swept across his forehead, fringe dotted with resting flakes of snow, and his eyes were incredibly bright in contrast to the dark sky. Said eyes were also looking at him with undertones of reality, snapping Dan back to the present.

“It’s okay,” He manages to answer after a slight pause, but the boy is stepping closer.

“No really, I really should have checked to make sure that no one was coming,” He insists. “I guess I just didn’t expect anyone else to be here on Christmas Eve.”

He starts to slowly place on foot in front of the other making the motions of heading towards the door. Dan surprises himself by immediately falling into step with him.

“I didn’t expect to be here either, to be fair.” Dan shrugs dumbly, boots scuffing away at the pavement beneath the thin layers of fluffy snow. The snow was still accumulating slightly, too. Dan wasn’t complaining. The flakes looked nice when they landed in Phil’s hair. “What brings you here?”

“Ran out of milk back home. There were a lot of relatives of mine crowding the house, so I figured a brief escape to the store wouldn’t hinder me. Oh, I’m Phil by the way.”

“Dan.” Dan nods.

There’s a brief pause as they come to the store entrance, making sure to quickly wipe their boots on the mat before further venturing into the store. Once they’re completely inside the door, Phil speaks up again. “What about you? What brings you here?”

Dan shrugs. He doesn’t see this kid deserving of his many complaints tonight. He’s radiating with some sort of positive energy, and Dan doesn’t want to dim it down. If anything, he needs that kind of presence beside him right now. It’s making him feel like he hates the world a little less. In fact, he’d almost completely forgotten about his brother back home.

“My mom sent me out. The rest of the family’s back with my younger brother.”

The boy’s quiet for a moment.

“Right.” He says simply. Dan’s starting to get worried, over thinking what he said and wondering where he could have gone wrong, when his thoughts are interrupted by the other boy once more. “Do you want a candy cane?” He asks. Dan blinks once or twice, but then nods dumbly.

“I mean, sure.” He says, still slightly surprised when Phil leans over the display beside them and picks out two full sized candy canes. The loop at the end was probably bigger than Dan’s entire hand, and he can only laugh.

“Candy canes always cheer me up. They’re my favourite sweet. I have to stock up on them to get me through the festive times of the year.” Phil observes. Dan laughs again.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah, I mean why would I deny myself the pleasure of something so great when it isn’t necessarily supported by the non-festive world outside of December?”

“You wouldn’t.” Dan says, a smile tugging at his lips. Phil points at Dan happily.

“Exactly.” He says. “What’s first on your shopping list?”

“We’re in need of milk too.” Dan says. Phil nods, and gestures they head towards the back of the store with the fridges. The silence that settles over them is only momentary.

“You looked like you could use some cheering up. That’s why I hoped something like a candy cane would help.” Phil says albeit quietly. Dan raises his eyebrows in surprise, looking over to the other boy with a slightly parted mouth. He promptly shuts it, though, as he doesn't necessarily have a reply for that ready to go. 

“Yeah. I’m not exactly my brother’s number one fan tonight, despite there being no lack of support for him back at the house.” Dan says.

“Ah,” Phil comments wisely, seeming to understand.

“Not that you need to hear anything like that.” Dan says just as they reach the fridge. He pulls out two pints of white milk, presuming that’s what Phil needs, and hands one to the other boy. Phil accepts it gratefully. “And you were doing a fine job of cheering me up before the candy cane, if I’m honest.”

The corners of Phil’s lips turn up in a smile. Dan tries to stop himself from flushing, despite knowing that it was a lost cause. “What’s next?”

“I’m only here for milk. I’ll follow you.”

“I need to get flour and peppermints apparently. I don’t know why my mom sent me out for such unnecessary things on Christmas Eve.”

“Unnecessary or not, you’ve made my mini excursion to the store much more interesting.” Phil comments, already heading down one of the aisles towards the baking supplies. Dan lets the smallest of smiles inch onto his face. “Plus, who says peppermints aren’t necessary?” Dan laughs at that.

“I’m sensing that festively themed candies seem to be a hit with you.” He comments. Phil nods, picking a bag of flour up from their display and tucking it under his arm. Dan almost offers to take it from him, but knows that Phil will likely decline. “I’m also assuming that you know where they are in the store?”

“You got me there.” Phil laughs. “They’re near the counter. C’mon.”

Their slightly damp boots hit the marble floor as the comfortable silence settled over their conversation. Dan didn’t feel the need to fill it with anything. They reach the counter after mere seconds, and before he can even protest Phil is grabbing the bag of peppermints and heading up to the cash, placing them on the countertop with his own pint of milk, along with the flour and the candy canes he’d picked out for the two of them. He gestures that Dan place his own items along with them.

“Phil, I-”

“C’mon. Consider it a Christmas present.” He urges. Dan still doesn’t seem sold, but a smile creeps on to Phil’s face after a second or two. “You can pay me back another time if you really feel the need to, Dan. Seriously.”

Dan sighs and puts his pint of milk on the counter. “I’m holding you to that.”

“So you _do_ want to hang out again sometime?” Phil smirked happily. Dan opened his mouth to reply, but closed it, instead replacing the dumbfounded expression with a happy smile of his own. Phil takes the smile as an answer in itself, and turns back to the counter to actually follow through with paying. Dan doesn’t wipe the stupid smile off of his face the entire time.

Once they once again find themselves facing the cold outside air, Dan reaches for the plastic bag that holds their things. Phil doesn’t let go himself, however, and their fingers end up overlapping on the plastic. Dan flushes, his cheeks turning an even deeper pink than they were before from just the cold. “I should get going.” He says. Phil reaches out and takes his arm, dragging him a step or two in the direction of his own car instead.

“There’s no way I’m letting you walk home in the cold by yourself on Christmas Eve. Are you kidding? I’ll give you a ride.”

“Seriously?” Dan asks. Phil nods as if it were obvious.

“Would _you_ pass up the opportunity to drive a cute boy home if it presented itself?” Phil asks. He isn’t directly facing Dan, so Dan can’t read his facial expression, but he’s also glad that Phil can’t see his own.

“Similarly, would you pass up the opportunity to get a drive home from a cute boy?” He asks in form of his reply. Phil laughs brightly.

“I sure wouldn’t.” He smiles, unlocking the car as they reach it’s side. They slip into their own seats respectively, Phil at the wheel and Dan riding shotgun, and Dan is immediately glad to see that Phil has seat heaters. He’s almost too hasty when it comes to turning them on once Phil puts the keys in the ignition.

“Cold, are you?” Asks Phil amusedly. Dan only smiles and shrugs, taking Phil’s content expression as enough of an answer before comfortable silence is once again fitting into the space between them.

Phil turns the stereo on as soon as they hit the main road after pulling out of the parking lot, and Dan would have been more surprised if the music playing hadn’t been set to the Christmas radio station. He finds Phil starting to hum along, and he finds himself immediately grinning from ear to ear. The snow falling scenically out their window, mixed with the shimmer of the street lights against the wet asphalt, and the warm car, and the soft voice of the boy beside him has Dan entirely forgetting about his awfully grinch-like mood on his walk here.

They’re pulling up to Dan’s house all too soon, after Dan had instructed Phil on how to get there, and he finds himself not wanting to leave Phil’s side. Phil reaches down to the bag at their feet on the floor and takes out his pint of milk, as well as one of the candy canes.

“Thanks for the ride. I appreciate it.” Dan says happily. Phil waves his hand dismissively.

“Anytime.” He says, handing Dan his items. Dan slips out of the car, but as soon as his feet hit the ground Phil’s reached out to take his wrist once more. “Wait-” He says, making sure Dan actually pauses before rummaging around in the console of his car. He seems to find what he’s looking for when he stumbles across a scrap piece of paper and a pen, scrawling a series of numbers down quickly and extending the paper to Dan. “If you decide you need company for another spontaneous shopping trip, among other things, you’ve got my number.” He smiles. Dan smiles too.

“I’ll text you.” Dan says. They look at each other for a moment. “Merry Christmas, Phil.”

“Merry Christmas.”

When Phil eventually drives away after Dan closes the door behind himself, he finds himself involuntarily holding the candy cane close to his chest. He watches Phil’s car turn the corner and disappear down the street, the smile never leaving his face.

_Maybe it will end up feeling like Christmas this year after all._

**Author's Note:**

> for those of you who follow my fic 'sidetracked', i plan to update again after christmas and wrap it up early into the new year, if not before. updates on next chapter at @torontohowell on twitter :) merry christmas & happy holidays!


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